RECENT EPISODES

On today's show, we'll chat with Google's director of product, Aparna Chennapragada, about the new voice assistant Google Home, and play this week's Silicon Tally with the producer of our "Codebreaker" podcast, Clare Toeniskoetter.

Film isn't the only medium that gets the virtual reality treatment. The best-selling author Wally Lamb has a new book called "I'll Take You There" that'll launch as part of the Metabook line — a series of works that include extras like 360 degree videos and photos. Metabook's CEO Christian Alfonsi joined us to talk about why he wanted to pursue this venture. We'll also check out reports that Snapchat's parent company has plans for an IPO that could be valued at $25 billion. Plus, as part of our "Codebreaker" podcast, we'll look at a new dating service that uses pictures of your exes to try and match you with someone who has a similar face.

Since Donald Trump's victory last week, encryption apps have seen an increase in users — like Signal, which has experienced 400 percent growth. On today's show, we'll interview Moxie Marlinspike, co-founder of the company that created the app. In other privacy news, Chicago has started constructing a network of data sensors to monitor the city's traffic flow — but some are worried that it could be used as a spying tool. We'll dive into their concerns. Plus: We have a preview of the second season of our "Codebreaker" podcast, which launches today. This season's fundamental question about tech: Can it save us?

On today's show, we'll talk about Facebook's fake news controversy and the role it may have played in the election; whether H-1B visas will continue under the Trump administration; and Lyft's decision to take off its pink mustache.

Our country voted not only on a new president last week, but also on various marijuana initiatives. Massachusetts, Nevada, Maine and California each passed measures legalizing the substance. We'll talk with Carter Laren, co-founder of the weed startup Gateway, about what this could mean for business. Plus: We'll chat with Pixar's former CFO Lawrence Levy about his new book, "To Pixar and Beyond," which chronicles the rise of the animation studio.

About the Show

Marketplace Tech®, hosted by Ben Brock Johnson, tackles the business behind the technology that’s obsessing us and changing our lives. With the listener in mind, this weekday segment examines everything from video games and robots to consumer protection and space travel.